steve-vx

I truly love Out Run. This was the very first game I ever bought for my 1040STFM in 1989. Still have it and even the receipt.

I am seeing your point. But what else can loyal fans do then to provide financial support. Maybe you can think of creative ways what people can do else. You know (I guess you remember) that I personally made huge efforts to bring back the iconic OIDS. It costs me more than $1000 to set up all the old hardware and retrieve the data tapes (!) the source codes and graphics etc. were stored on. Not to talk about the dozends of hours and months to gain all the necessary information. It also revealed loads of files of Dungeon Master (Carl now has all the stuff, I hope he will do something with it). I´d rather look at the support of loyalists then to think about thieves who have no appreciation for what they are doing. After all efforts like this, whether any of your original games or conversions to the Jag, are additions to video gaming history.

Even though piracy is a problem there are still ways to ensure that a release is worthwhile for the developers. I would personally always support such releases financially by buying / preordering the game or even pay more to help funding it. Not releasing it because of unauthorized copying is a bit like staying home because of dangers lurking in the streets. Even though I own a Jag CD I still buy physical releases for the sake of supporting the retro gaming community and because physical games are just a wonderful thing to have. I know people who copy every game just to store it and never play it. Are these the people who we want to care about?

So wonderful. Massive thanks to you! Merry Christmas!!!

Update on shipping: I cannot edit the initial post anymore, but I have found a cheaper way of shipping the box. Here are the prices: Germany: 12,90 EUR Poland: 29,50 EUR France: 29,50 EUR USA: 29,50 EUR UK: 23,50 EUR

I always found that my otherwise complete Falcon system was incomplete without the original box. Until now, I used an old 1040ST cardboard box to store it. Robert Tercsi ("Robson") made a print template for the box a few years ago and had some packaging printed. After consulting with Robert, and after a long search, I found a printing company that could give us a faithful reproduction of the cardboard. Here on the pictures you can see the result. As you may know, a Spanish company also offers prints. But you have to cut them out yourself. In addition, the quality is said to be not very good (I did not check them, maybe it is!). Anyway, these boxes I had printed are ready punched, glued and embossed and can be assembled in seconds. Due to the small quantity and the increased production costs, they are not quite cheap. Still, I'm glad to finally have a cardboard box for my Falcon. If someone wants one: Each box costs 45 EUR (only the box, no styros). Postage for a package has to be added. The box will be well protected with thick packing paper. Cost for shipping: I calculate with https://www.transglobalexpress.de/quote/quote/ and the result for shipping is FLAT or assembled as BOX: FLAT: parcel in dimensions 80x80x3cm: 18,29 EUR for shipping within Germany, 25,91 EUR for shipping to UK, 15,24 EUR for shipping to France, 19,95 EUR to Poland, 67,07 EUR to USA. BOX: parcel in dimensions 60x25x45cm: 10,35 EUR for shipping within Germany, 33,84 EUR for shipping to UK, 20,15 EUR for shipping to France, 26,44 EUR to Poland, 130,40 EUR to USA. These are only examples. I will gladly calculate individually, but please don't forget that the flat package is quite big. Please DM if you want one (the Falcon and any accessories are of course not included).

LR just released American Hero for various platforms. I ordered it. So LR Games would be a great partner. I ordered my copy for the PS4. Of course I would order a second copy if it came out for the Jag. But yes, I am a fan of LRG and their efforts and would appreciate if they could be involved.

I thought so, but wasn´t somebody going to release it? I recall that someone posted that it was finished and even in a gold master state?

I missed out on recent developments a bit due to loads of work. Are there any news on new ports? Also, I just read the comment on Commando. The version I downloaded ages ago didn´t seem to work on a skunkboard and also not on a GD drive. Tried several versions of the file but none work. Is it correct that Commando does not work on a GD? I sold my Skunk-board 2 years ago though because the GD seemed to provide more flexibility. But it still bugs me that I wasn´t able to get it up and running.

Hi everyone, is there any news on Soul Star?

I found NOS Atari Falcon keyboards in storage. Never used. I opened one up and it is as clean as if it fell from the belts of the factory. I am adding pictures. So if anyone wants to replace his old Falcon keyboard with a new one (UK layout) or wants to beef up his stock ST, drop me a line. Price is (incl. worldwide registered shipping) 119 EUR. Hopefully no further restrictions of postal services due to "pandemic reasons" will be applied later this year. Please note: At first sight I found two and offered them in the Atari Jaguar section. Being surprised about the interest I had another look and found some more (the German keyboard is not for sale. I need this one). Please send me a PM if you are interested. Enjoy your days! Stefan

Robocop 3 for the Jag would be awesome. As would be EPIC - both were programmed and designed by DID who brought 3D gaming on stock STs to new heights IMO. btw way I found two NOS Atari Falcon keyboards in storage. Never used. I opened one up and it as clean as if it fell from the belts of the factory. I am adding pictures. So if anyone wants to replace his old Falcon keyboard with a new one (UK layout) or wants to beef up his stock ST, drop me a line. Later I will offer them in a dedicated thread here on AA. I haven´t made up my mind about the price, yet. Might be able to ship them worldwide registered for 119 EUR (incl. shipping). Hopefully no further restrictions of postal services will be applied later this year.

Incredible!!!!!!!!!! You are so fantastic!

Hi there, as a long time collector and researcher of everything Arcadia I would also like to drop in some questions but I need some more days as I am dead busy. Is the any date set when you want to talk to Mr. Scott? I need to read through all this anyways. Cheers Stefan

Check whether you need the PAL or NTSC-version

Awesome vid. But honestly guys, even as rookies or non-programmers aren´t you aware that porting a game is much more than simply recompiling code? Come on. Would you expect a NFL player to compete in a soccer world cup just because "it´s about balls and running"? Be reflected. Or why can´t you turn a Porsche into a Lambo in your own garage? It is so easy. Both have wheels and an engine. No offence intended, but really. You don´t have to be a programmer to qualify as a true lover of retro games, but one should look under the bonnet of the different machines to understand what is going on behind the screen. I find this knowledge as cool as the games themselves. It must drain CJ´s brain to answer these questions again and again.

Bought Escape and Alice´s Mom. Thanks mate for selling the Roms. Now I have the physical and digital versions and I am proud on owning them.

@LordKraken: Orion is doing just that: nd I will be a proud buyer of the Roms even though I own the official cart versions. How can I spend money better than on supporting people who support me in providing fun games? Any creative soul knows the feeling when sales (aka appreciation) occur, and if only one a day. A

Indeed, what a f*. I am expecting my GD this week. But why would I want to sell any games from my complete Jag collection incl. originally purchased Phobx, Orion, Reboot or Songbird releases? The GD will sit in my second Jag and saves cart swapping, the CD-firmware update will help keeping my CD drive/Jag-combo alive that wasn't separated since 1997. But why would any enthusiast (and who else is playing the Jag today) sell anything that was well kept for almost 30 years? I dont know about Kong, but the Wormhole cart from a distance looks like the one I bought from Alexander himself by the way. Same goes for Spacewars and Phase Zero which I bought from either Carl or MyAtari (don´t remember).

I didn´t know that this game is now in the hands of CJ. However, is there any way to playtest the current version, even without FMV or CD sound?

I doubt so. I am afraid to believe that this is or was rather wishful thinking. Maybe someone wants to finish it and his will is stronger than actual capabilities. Which is sad. Or the person involved is too busy with life. Which is understandable. But time moves on and there are people around who could provide help. One only needs to ask.

Where did you get your GD drive? I have ordered mine many moons ago from SainT and never get any updates. Also AA doesn´t have it in stock. Any hint would be highly appreciated. Cheers

Is he not taking orders anymore? I would also like to order some stuff.

What I find most interesting is that many of the whitebeards of the early industry are still with us - and they are willing to talk. I have interviewed quite a few of them already and can only recommend to browse and search and make contacts as long as they are with us. As to where the Arcadia Maxit comes from... I assume that they packed some early tech demos together to have yet another cart to sell. And board games like checkers or games like hangman were easy to identify and to connect with for non-gamers. We must not forget that the medium was new for most and familiar games helped to lower the entry barrier of understanding and acceptance. Stefan

Dear colleagues, Harry Saal replied and here is his original message. I must admit that he replied relatively quick, but I was so busy finalizing two books that I simply had no chance to do anything else. So, have fun: "I'm happy to update you and your colleagues on the history of MAXIT! and the many clones it engendered. Feel free to post the following notes, in full and unedited. Here's the backstory about a computer game which I developed over 40 years ago. I was introduced to the Orda (Israel) board game MATTIX in about 1974; from materials posted on the web, it appears that MATTIX was introduced by Orda in 1968. I was developing multi-player gaming software for the original 4K Commodore PET which I acquired early in 1977, thanks to the help of Sam Bernstein, VP of Marketing at Commodore. As one of several 2 players games being developed for a future online gaming system ("GameNet", which never came to pass), I wrote a very close implementation of the Orda game and called it MAXIT! (note the exclamation mark at the end of the official name). It was written entirely in Commodore BASIC and with full instructions just fit into the 4K RAM memory of the PET. As an active member of our local PUG ("PET User Group"), I contributed a cassette of the game (V3.0) to the club in 1978. I also sold cassettes of the game in the US , Germany and the UK for $3.95 via club newsletters and distributors. Probably less than 50 copies were ever sold while many many more were passed around. (Much more successful was the "BASIC Programmer's Toolkit", a ROM-based collection of programming utilities, such as RENUMBER, that I introduced in 1979). I was not involved in ANY of the many versions and variants of MAXIT! that you have traced but I'm proud to have sired so many children and grandchildren. Thanks for the excellent detective work! Looking at the actual code of those version would be like genetically tracing the lineage more closely than just the general game play and user interface. I am somewhat saddened that there does not appear to be any cognizance of what I consider by far to be the best part of my original MAXIT! program. MATTIX was a two person board game, but MAXIT! allowed one user to play against the computer, by entering "1" as the number of players. In the minimal 4K memory, I was able to craft a really powerful computer opponent, which used a 2 or 3 half-ply look-ahead to select its move quite rapidly. Of course, the starting board being random and the human player having varied skills, the PET didn't always win, but it usually whupped the human with some very sharp moves, especially in the end game (when the search space was small.) I'd love to know if any of that code ended up in the successor implementations which would be a very clear marker of the evolution of my code. P.S. The name MAXIT! was coined to embody the program's skill in maximizing its score when looking ahead. -- ================================================================= Dr. Harry J. Saal Chairman, Retrotope, Inc."